Page 196 of Love Among the Ruins
She'd become good friends with people she’d met there and whom she still kept in touch with because climbing Africa’s tallest peak was an experience that had that kind of life-altering effect.
There were many times she thought of Jonas on that trip, of how different things would have been if he'd been here. Of how her life would have been if they had climbed the mountain together.
Living proof of how lives were so radically altered by a moment's recklessness, she had cried many tears when she reached the summit. Tears for Jonas, for a second burial of sorts, of putting him to rest but not forgetting him. Of not feeling guilty that she was here alone.
Her friends had comforted her, and some, like Tane, the huge, tatted, Samoan guy she'd met at the Londorossi Gate where they’d started the trek, had become a pillar of support.
When the group finally made their way back down again, she was so bone tired and exhausted, that she had to sit down and rest, in an attempt to catch her breath. A few yards away Tane was talking to someone who looked so much like Dominic, she’d wiped her eyes, wondering if she was seeing things.
But it really was Dominic in the flesh, talking to the guy she'd recently befriended. Dominic, who was supposed to be all the way back in Greece, was here, in Tanzania.
It wasn't until later that she discovered Dominic had flown here, unbeknownst to her, that he'd hired Tane to keep her safe. Some women would have found this behavior controlling, or suffocating, but she understood Dominic and his need to look after her. The man had taken it upon himself to make her feel more loved and cherished than she’d ever believed was possible.
That’s what this man did. He was protective, and caring, and he was always there for her. Making up, it seemed, for all the times in her life she had felt alone.
Recently, he had returned to the US to spend Thanksgiving with his family, and that was when he’d announced that he was dating Eleni. That was also when he told them who she was.
So much had changed since then that she barely recognized the person she was anymore.
She had stayed on at Steele Shipping, but had moved to a different department, though she and Miranda still saw each other almost daily. Eleni refused to move in with Dominic, but she had moved to a small apartment that felt more like home than her room in the hotel had.
As for her mother, she doted on Dominic. He'd spent Christmas with them in Spetses, and for the New Year, Eleni and Dominic had come to New York and spent a glorious week there.
But she'd been nervous about this visit to see his parents. Dominic had assured her that they wouldn't be staying at the family chalet. This man and his family seemed to own a home in every city, and Eleni had come to take things in her stride, never knowing what any moment with Dominic might bring.
She, who had hated people like him alighting on her tiny island, now had a front row seat in his life. But deep down, she knew that Dominic was a good man, and as they sat in front of the roaring fire together, in a country she’d never been to, meeting his parents, going skiing tomorrow, with this billionaire grumpy boss who loved her so completely, she was filled with deep gratitude for the blessings in her life.
“Isn't Alexander coming?” Dominic asked, looking around at his parents.
“He’s on his way,” Robert handed out champagne glasses to everyone and proposed a toast.
“To Eleni, welcome to the family.” His father turned to Dominic and gazed at him proudly. “To Dominic and the new consortium.”
“The deal isn’t done yet, Dad.” A flush crept along Dominic's cheeks.
“But you're working on it.”
Susan looked at her son, her eyes full of pride.
“You started without me?” Alexander strode through the door, a whirlwind breaking up their cozy little soiree.
“You're late,” his mother remarked. But Alexander was too busy grinning, his gaze bouncing between Eleni and Dominic. He poured himself a glass of champagne. “Since we’re toasting, to Eleni and Dom, but especially to Dom. Looks like you might pull it off, bro. A deal without Galatis. Who would have thought?”
“You jealous?” Dominic growled.
“It’s a great deal…” Robert interjected. “Ifit works out.”
“No reason why it shouldn’t,” said Dominic.
“You’ve got a real fire lit under your butt, Dom. I didn’t think you had it in you to ditch Galatis, and move on. To say I am impressed would be an understatement. But I still don’t understand what Galatis did to make you back off.”
Eleni braced herself. She'd spoken to Alexander a few times on the phone and had suffered the jokes and jibes, all lighthearted, about her pretending to be a maid the last time they met. She was waiting for him to say something now.
No one in Dominic’s family knew that Galatis was her father, and that this was the reason why Dominic refused to have anything to do with him. She’d urged him to tell them, because she didn’t want secrets, and there was nothing to hide, but Dominic was obsessed with getting the deal finalized first.
“Have you met Hector Galatis?” Eleni asked him, forcing a smile. “The man had Dominic running all over the place. He was a joke. He’s not someone you can take seriously.”
Alexander’s jaw dropped. “Do know who you’re talking about? The richest man in all—”
